As the motivation from the new year wanes, it’s easy to find ourselves feeling a bit lost. The world inundates us with messages about improving our bodies and strengthening our minds but leaves out the most important component of health - our spirit.
If you’ve been feeling empty and are looking for encouragement, consider nurturing your spiritual health. But before we get into how to nurture our spiritual health, let’s look at what it is and why it’s important from a biblical perspective.
Why is Biblical spiritual health important?
Throughout the Bible, God emphasizes the importance of spirit, soul, and body. 1 Thessalonians 5:23 says “Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
However, in today’s day and age it’s easy to focus on only the tangible aspects of ourselves. Although God calls us to take care of our bodies and our minds, He also reminds us that the health of our spirit must come first. More than that, our spirit can endure things that our earthly bodies cannot.
“A man's spirit will endure sickness, but a crushed spirit who can bear? - Proverbs” 18:14
And if the past few years have shown us anything, it’s the importance of our spiritual health. Amidst political polarization, supply chain issues, and rising inflation, a strong spirit provides us with a foundation for resilience, peace, and trust in God. Proverbs reminds us that a positive mindset can only go so far if we haven’t nurtured our spirit.
“A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.” - Proverbs 17:22
Ultimately, cultivating spiritual health is essential for leading a fulfilling and meaningful life in accordance with God's will. What exactly is spiritual health? What does the Bible say about it?
What is spiritual health?
Biblical spiritual health refers to the state of a person's spiritual well-being in accordance with the teachings of the Bible.
It’s about nurturing one's relationship with God through prayer, worship, reading the Scriptures, and striving to live in alignment with God's will. It involves engaging in acts of service and building relationships with others in a spirit of love and respect.
In essence, biblical spiritual health is about integrating one's faith into all aspects of life and seeking to live in a way that reflects God's love and grace.
“And Mary said: My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” - Luke 1:46-47
Nurturing our spiritual health is a means deepening our relationship with God. How do we go about doing that?
How can we nurture our spiritual health?
When we are looking at strengthening our relationship with God by tending to our spiritual health, it’s common to run across a few stumbling blocks.
Sin and temptation feel even more difficult to steer clear of in this age of instant gratification. Busyness and distractions bombard us from every direction. And to top it off we live in a society that prioritizes individualism, leading to a lack of community to support us and hold us accountable.
These hurdles pull us away from our faith walk but we can overcome them with intentional effort and God’s guidance.
Here are a few practical steps we can take to overcome those obstacles and tend to our spiritual health:
- Read the Bible - Take time out of your day to read Scripture and reflect on its meaning. Allow God’s Word to shape your thoughts and inform your decisions.
- Start your day with some Bible Journaling (Insert journaling Bible)
- Invest in a physical Bible to take on the go. We recommend a pocket Bible like the Scripture Pocket Edition since it can start conversations and open witnessing opportunities.
- Listen to an audio Bible on your commute, while doing everyday chores, or before you fall asleep. You’ll be surprised by how much Scripture you can soak in and pray over throughout your day. Psalm 1:1-3
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Pray Regularly - Prayer is central to spiritual health. It’s our way of conversing with God and inviting Him into our lives. Make it a priority to pray with consistency and intentionality.
- Pray before you eat, when you brush your teeth, or before you turn on the TV or other media for entertainment. Center yourself in the Father through prayer to set the tone for different phases of your routine.
- If you’re someone who sets out with great prayer goals for the day but gets distracted by the hustle and bustle of daily life, don’t be afraid to set alarms on your phone to remind you to stop, slow down, and intentionally invest in your relationship with God.
- Prayer Journaling is a great way to track your spiritual growth and really lay it all before Him. Sometimes we can write things that we're having a hard time saying or thinking. Make your prayer journal a safe space to have intimacy with God. Check out this Prayer Journal for inspiration.
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Engage in Fellowship and Worship - Connect with your church community and allow the collective faith of the church to deepen your relationship with God.
- Your brothers and sisters in Christ are one of the most valuable assets you have at your disposal. Don’t be afraid to reach out and make connections with those around you. See if anyone is interested in being prayer partners or getting together for a small Bible study of just a few people every week. Hold each other accountable to the spiritual goals you have set. It’ll be much easier than doing it on your own. (Proverbs 27:17, Matthew 18:20)
- If you have a love for singing or music, find others in the body who do also and have worship sessions together. Share your favorite worship songs and discuss what Scriptures they remind you of and what God impresses upon you when you hear them.
- Set aside a time at the end of the day to gather together with your family and talk about what God did in your day. Pray and worship together. If you currently live away from family, reach out and ask to have this time together over the phone or a video call.
For more resources on Bible study and teachings, you can visit https://holylandmarketplace.com/collections/ministries-torah-class.
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Serve God’s People - Put your faith into action by getting involved with missions and other service opportunities. Find ways to bless others and build relationships in your community. Donate to HLMP
- One of our primary purposes as God’s people is to be a light unto the world through serving others. There are many wonderful faith-based organizations to get involved in. Here at HLMP, we feel called to support God's people in Israel. Every artisan, volunteer, and employee feels a deep, personal connection to this mission as we work together.
- Secular charity organizations can also be an excellent way to get involved in helping your local community while also being a light unto the world. Not just to the people you help, but also to other volunteers and people you work with. You never know when an opportunity to share the Gospel will come up. Find one in your area that aligns with the skills and gifts God gave you.
After reading these steps, which one is God calling you to focus on right now? If He is calling you to serve, keep reading to learn how Holyland Marketplace is serving the people of Israel (and how you can too!).
At Holyland Marketplace, we are passionate about serving God’s people through our mission to support the Jewish people of Israel. We obtain quality products crafted, produced, or distributed by talented Israelis and ship them from Israel to our warehouse in Florida. We then, with God's help, offer these products to you for sale, so that you can support the people and land of Israel. The proceeds from these sales are used to help our many Israeli vendors expand their businesses, put more people to work, and to support Jewish families in the Holyland.
We are so grateful to have the honor of doing the Lord’s work. We hope that on your journey of spiritual health, you will be inspired this year to create a meaningful connection with God and your community.
Encouragement for your faith walk
In every age and every season, our focus on faith should be our priority. Faith is the key to having hope in the present by helping us fix our eyes upon our eternal life with God.
For while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come. - 1 Timothy 4:8
We hope this blog post is encouraging to all those looking to live out the faith. If you are looking for additional resources to nurture your spiritual health, make sure to check out one of our other family sites @: